Umbilical cords contain biological materials that are used in a variety of medical procedures. Specifically, umbilical cords contain fluid, blood, cells and specifically stem cells that may be used in other applications. As the number of procedures using biological materials derived from umbilical cords grows, collecting biological material from umbilical cords has become a commonplace medical practice. A newly-delivered umbilical cord may be used, or a cord may be used after a child is born but before the placenta is delivered. Typically, a medical practitioner will clamp and cut the cord at a selected position. One or more needles are inserted into the umbilical cord to extract biological material. The extracted material is then placed into a bag for storage.
Despite the growing uses for biological material from umbilical cords, current tools and methods for collecting biological material from an umbilical cord have several drawbacks. In this regard, medical practitioners use needles and syringes to harvest material from umbilical cords. The use of needles has the limitation that a conventional needle has a relatively small diameter relative to the diameter of the cord. The needle may not extend through the length of the umbilical cord or be configured or positioned to collect material from across the whole diameter of the cord.
Another drawback of the traditional methods used to collect material from umbilical cords is that the use of needles and syringes present potentially dangerous situations for medical personnel. Whenever a needle is used for a medical procedure, a risk exists that the personnel may be inadvertently stuck by the needle and contract disease or blood-borne illness. As such, using needles to collect biological material from umbilical cords may be inefficient and may also create a potential hazard for medical personnel.
Accordingly, an apparatus and method for thoroughly and safely harvesting biological material from an umbilical cord is desirable.